MORGANTOWN — It was just a matter of weeks ago when the WVU women’s soccer team found itself in the middle of, well, nowhere of sorts.
The Mountaineers weren’t at the bottom of the Big 12 standings, but not close to the top, either.
They were a group built on defense, but also one that struggled to score.
None of that mattered Sunday afternoon, as Jordan Brewster lined up a shot with her right foot on a free kick from about 70-yards out in overtime.
The ball soared through the air and then took a high hop past TCU keeper Lauren Kellett and into the top left of the goal to hand the Mountaineers an improbable Big 12 championship with a 1-0 victory against the No. 17 Horned Frogs at the Round Rock (Texas) Multipurpose Complex.
It was the fifth Big 12 tournament title — this one in front of 1,715 fans — for the Mountaineers (10-4-7), who earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament with the win.
WVU is now 5-0 in the Big 12 championship game, but this one may have been its most improbable one.
It wasn’t until Oct. 16 that the Mountaineers got things going in the right direction.
A late surge helped the Mountaineers earn the No. 4 seed and WVU is 6-0-1 over its last seven games, including wins against Oklahoma State and No. 16 Texas in the first two rounds of the Big 12 tournament.
In the final, both teams were scoreless through regulation, but that changed in the 93rd minute, when Brewster scored her third goal of the season.
From there, the Mountaineers continued to keep TCU off the scoreboard through the first and second overtime periods to secure the victory.
WVU keeper Kayza Massey played a major role in that, as she finished with seven saves.
TCU finished with an 11-10 advantage in shots and a 9-6 edge in corner kicks, but Massey continued to make the plays when the Mountaineers needed them most.
The Mountaineers will learn their NCAA fate during the selection show at 3:30 p.m. Monday.
